On this episode of the Overland Journal Podcast, host Scott Brady interviews Israeli traveler Adam Shani about growing up on a southern Israel kibbutz, where community, humility, self-reliance, fixing machinery, and non-consumerism shaped him. Adam describes Israel’s compulsory military service, volunteering for special forces, enduring demanding training, and learning perseverance, logistics, survival skills, and controlling one’s response under hardship—lessons he later used in travel. He recounts his first major expedition in 2000: flying disassembled Honda XR600s to Cape Town and riding to Ethiopia on a low budget, then returning to work nearly a year on a Botswana farm amid dangerous wildlife.
Overland Journal Podcast Episode #288
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Guest Bio:
Adam Shani
Adam Shani is an Israeli-born adventure motorcycle traveler and automotive engineer. With professional expertise in heavy machinery maintenance, Adam began his most ambitious journey by purchasing and rebuilding a wrecked BMW HP2 Enduro in South Africa. He then set off on a solo, round-the-world odyssey spanning over 130,000 kilometers and 60 countries across four continents—riding through sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, Japan, and the Americas. A fiercely self-reliant traveler, Adam is known within the global overland community for doing all his own mechanical work—famously rebuilding his motorcycle mid-journey—and for traveling light. In addition to his epic RTW trip, he completed a separate 52,000-kilometer solo tour through North and South America.
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Host Bios:
Scott Brady
Scott is the executive publisher and co-founder of Expedition Portal and Overland Journal and is often credited with popularizing overlanding in North America. His travels by 4WD and adventure motorcycle span all seven continents and include three circumnavigations of the globe. His polar expeditions include two vehicle crossings of Antarctica and the first long-axis crossing of Greenland. @scott.a.brady
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